Family celebrates 100th birthday of Hyannis Harbor icon

HYANNIS — The thick, gray fog that veiled everything around Hyannis Harbor couldn't spoil the birthday party of perhaps the town's most renowned boats Thursday.

Jason Kolnos

HYANNIS — So what if you couldn't see the Kennedy family compound while riding aboard the M/V Prudence on this pea souper of a morning? The thick, gray fog that veiled everything around Hyannis Harbor couldn't spoil the birthday party of perhaps the town's most renowned boats Thursday.

A 100th anniversary celebration was held at Aselton Memorial Park to honor the 59-foot sightseeing vessel. The double-decker wooden boat with a red-white-and-blue paint job has been a fixture in the harbor since it was brought there by patriarchs of the Scudder family in 1962.

And it was this coastal steamer Prudence upon which the family grew the Hy-Line Cruises empire.

"She is the iconic pinnacle of that company," said Sheila Meagher Scudder, a Prudence historian whose husband, David, is vice president of Hy-Line. "Not only is she a great boat for her historical significance, she's also incredibly important to this family. She's beautiful and much loved."

The M/V Prudence is believed to be the oldest continuously operated, fully documented merchant vessel in the United States, according to members of the Scudder family and maritime historians. The vessel, built in 1911 in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, previously made runs to the Boston Harbor Islands and served a route from Bristol, R.I., to Prudence Island.

A new exhibit celebrating the Prudence that runs through Sept. 25 also debuted at the Cape Cod Maritime Museum on South Street Thursday. The exhibit features original relics from the vessel, historic photographs, a film documentary and artwork.

The Prudence's Thursday morning started off like it has for 50 years, ferrying passengers around the harbor past historic sights such as the Channel Point Lighthouse and the Kennedy digs.

A group of about 35 senior citizens on a bus tour from Faith Baptish Church in Avon, Ind., seemed impressed that a wooden boat made of Longleaf yellow pine, cedar and native white oak was in such good shape for a centenarian.

"We thought it was pretty neat that the same day we were here is the same day as a 100-year celebration," assistant pastor Morris Hunsucker said.

In the afternoon, current and former crew members joined the Scudder family, town leaders and members of the Cape's political delegation to share memories and fete the Prudence.

"The boat has done very well, despite who is running it. We tried to sink it," joked 84-year-old Richard Scudder, who originally brought the Prudence to Hyannis with his brother Robert. "It has survived us all."

The Prudence will be operating until Oct. 30, but its future beyond that is uncertain, as family members are considering museum-type sites to house the historic boat.

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